Faced with a cost-of-living crisis and persistently low deposit rates, Greeks are returning to a traditional investment: the golden pound. The rise in the price of the precious metal justifies them.
From the beginning of the year until the end of September, a total of 35,972 pounds of gold were settled at the Bank of Greece, while 4,662 pieces were acquired.
Last week, the price of gold reached a new all-time high, when an ounce surpassed $2,700 for the first time. This evolution is mainly attributed to the escalation of conflicts in the Middle East combined with the upcoming elections in the USA.
But regardless of these facts, the gold price trend in recent years has been strongly upward. Since the beginning of the year alone, its price has increased by 30% – one of the highest returns among other commodities – and several analysts estimate that in the next 12 months it will have exceeded $2,900 per ounce.
The price of the Bank of Greece pound of gold
Inevitably, the recovery in gold drags down the price of the pound of gold. On Friday, the official price of the pound of gold given by the Bank of Greece reached 567.98 for purchase and 678.02 for sale. The large discrepancy between the first price, which is the price at which you can liquidate the pounds you have, and the second, which is the price at which you can acquire them from the Bank of Greece, is a perennially controversial issue.
Since the beginning of the year, however, the price of a pound of gold has increased by around 34% (the purchase price at the end of 2023 was 425.10 euros and the sale price was 512.25). Therefore, the return on this specific investment reaches 11%. (i.e. for someone who bought pounds of gold that they are selling today).
Correspondingly, in two years (22 months) the price of a pound of gold increased by 46.6% (purchase price 387.69 and sale price 467.24 euros). Therefore, the yield between 2023-2024 reaches 21.5%.
Buying and selling
In order to better serve the existing increased demand, the Bank of Greece will accept direct credit transfers for the sale of pounds sterling to the public. In particular, the public will be able to make a direct credit transfer from an account held with a Payment Service Provider based in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) for transactions up to 100,000 euros.
It should be noted that, for the purchase and sale of pounds of gold, the use of cash is permitted with a transaction limit of 500 euros, while for the sale of euro coins the provisions set out on the Bank of Greece website apply .
With regard to the customer identification process, the provisions imposed by the legislative framework for the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing apply.
How can you get pounds from TtE
1. What is instant payment?
Direct payment is a credit transfer that makes the value of a payment order available in the payee’s account within 10 days at any time (Acceptance of direct payments refers to the transfer of money from the payer’s account (IBAN of the payer) to
Bank of Greece account (beneficiary’s IBAN).
2. What is the role of the Bank of Greece in direct payments?
The Bank of Greece has prioritized the full adoption of direct payments by the Greek market.
In October 2024, the Bank of Greece also leads the transaction banking environment by introducing direct payments for its customers’ transactions. For the first time in Greece, acceptance of direct payments at the point of transaction is offered with a limit of 100,000 euros.
3. What operations are covered by the use of direct payments?
The possibility of using direct payments concerns the sale of British gold pounds, collector coins and commemorative coins, as well as the disposal of euro coins.
4. How is a direct payment initiated at the Bank of Greece cash desk?
Initiating a direct credit transfer from the originator is a simple process.
It is carried out through electronic banking applications provided by Payment Service Providers.
5. Where can we find Bank of Greece IBANs and/or QR codes?
IBANs and corresponding QR codes will be available in visible locations at Bank of Greece ATMs.
6. What changes in relation to customer identification?
With regard to the customer identification process, the provisions of anti-money laundering legislation continue to apply and
terrorist financing.
7. What will happen if the wrong amount is sent?
In this case, 2 cases can be distinguished:
one. the value is below correct
The transaction is considered valid and the customer must top up the balance with a new direct payment (the same reasoning is used)
b. the value is greater than the correct one
The transaction is considered void and the customer makes an immediate new payment of the correct full amount.
Source: APE – MEB